


Gutterball

by DarkspawnHorror, onlyoneday



Category: Pacific Rim (2013)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Homeless, Alternate Universe - No Kaiju, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Implied/Referenced Underage Drinking, Implied/Referenced Underage Sex, M/M, Underage Prostitution
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-11-18
Updated: 2014-11-27
Packaged: 2018-02-25 20:10:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 2
Words: 14,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2634659
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarkspawnHorror/pseuds/DarkspawnHorror, https://archiveofourown.org/users/onlyoneday/pseuds/onlyoneday
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Chuck didn’t realize how difficult it was going to be on his own.  At seventeen, he thought he knew the world better than his father, the man that shut off and shut him out of everything since his wife died. The young man had taken off, intending to hitchhike north to live with his uncle in Seattle.  Problem was, he didn’t know how to reach his uncle and his journey ended just outside of Portland when he ran out of cash and had to start roughing it. It's pouring and his lucky night when he runs into a pair of brothers in a similar situation.</p><p>In retrospect, he should have stolen more than five hundred dollars from his father, but for a boy of seventeen it seemed like enough.  It could never be enough. Nothing is ever enough. </p><p>A lesson the Beckets have also learned the hard way. It wasn’t enough when their mother died. It wasn’t enough when their father abandoned them in the middle of the night. It wasn’t enough when the bank repossessed everything and it damn sure wasn’t enough when they wound up in the system. Orphaned. Alone with nothing.</p><p>But at least they have each other, right?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Rain

Chuck didn’t realize how difficult it was going to be on his own.  At seventeen, he thought he knew the world better than his father, the man that shut off and shut him out of everything since his wife died.  Chuck couldn’t look at his father anymore, look at the disappointment or hurt in his eyes every time he looked at him.  The young man had taken off, shoving a duffel bag with clothes, toiletries, and cash, intending to hitchhike north to live with his uncle in Seattle.  Problem was, he didn’t know how to reach his uncle and his journey ended just outside of Portland when he ran out of cash and had to start living on the street.

He wasn’t proud of some of the things he had to do to get that far, sharing a drive with some seedy truckers and giving handies while they traveled.  At least those trips were free.  He knew he should probably call his Dad, but he wasn’t going to give in that easy.  He could make it on his own -- he’d gotten this far, hadn’t he? 

Too bad it was raining tonight.  Chuck had managed to find a little nook to duck into, his southern California attire not quite enough to keep him warm and dry.  He bundled into everything he owned save one change of clothes, using the packed duffel as a pillow while he curled up, stomach grumbling in protest.  Maybe he’d be able to find some scraps tomorrow, but now it was too late and he was too tired from sitting four hours in the front seat of a truck while a greasy man pawed at him.  In retrospect, he should have stolen more than five hundred dollars from his father, but for a boy of seventeen it seemed like enough.  It could never be enough.

 

Nothing is ever enough.

 

A lesson the Beckets have also learned the hard way. It wasn’t enough when their mother died. It wasn’t enough when their father abandoned them in the middle of the night. It wasn’t enough when the bank repossessed everything and it damn sure wasn’t enough when they wound up in the system. Orphaned. Alone with nothing.

Yancy had been just on the other side of Too Old and Raleigh wasn’t far behind. Jaz, though, she still had a few years and that was okay. At least she’d have a safe place to be and a roof over her head. Her brothers, though, not so much. Not that they hadn’t tried. They’d bounced from place to place and through a blundering year of sleeping rough and traveling down from Alaska had also ended up in the green but wet state of Oregon. They figure it could be worse. The minimum age of work is 14 but getting a job when you have no permanent residence is tricky and even then living and saving enough to actually _get_ an apartment is nothing short of Mission Impossible. They’d had a car for a while which had been nice but the engine had packed up and it cost more than they were worth to get it fixed, so they’d sold it for scrap for three hundred dollars and that was the end of that.

 For them, tonight was like any other night. Cold for summer. Raining as was per usual. Yancy had finished his shift in the back of a kitchen and Raleigh, as usual, joined him after a day of perusing through the local library. He would rather be working full time but Yancy was insistent his kid brother had at least _some_ kind of education. And so that was the deal.

 

“Yancy come _on_ bro, hurry up!” The voice rang out against the brick walls of the alley they were running down to get out of the rain, shoes hitting the concrete with hard slaps.

 

“I’m coming, gimmie a minute. You’re not carrying anything.” Which was true, enough. Yancy had his arms full with a white plastic bag from the restaurant he worked in. Left overs they wouldn’t have been able to sell the next day. A nice little set up that meant they almost always had _something_ to eat.

 

As the voices grew louder, the first boy suddenly slammed to a stop, seeing an unfamiliar body in the doorway of the abandoned warehouse they had been squatting in for the last few weeks.

 

“Hey.” He nudged at the boy with his foot.

 

“Dude, you’re in my door.”

 

Chuck had drifted in and out of sleep for a few hours before he finally dozed into something a little more permanent. Barely feeling the foot, he mumbled a little and just curled up further, off in some sort of dreamland.  Well, more of a nightmare, but it was still sleep.  Another moment and the cold seeped in more than he would have liked and the words finally registered.  “Your door?” he grumbled sleepily.

 

“Yeah, my door, You gotta get up.”

 

The boy, himself, couldn’t be more than twenty. Blonde with shaggy hair that hung past the tips of his ears and in the way of his blue, blue eyes. He was looking rather perplexed, and was soon to be joined by another, slightly older version of himself, that loomed a bit over his brother (clearly) who hadn’t finished growing, yet.

How one could live in Heston’s Wholesale Tool Supply, one doesn’t know, but they apparently did. Chuck’s eyes slowly blinked open and he groaned, resisting the urge to curl back up.  He’d finally gotten some sleep, but now he was being woken by some asshole kicking him out of a doorway.  “Didn’t your mum ever teach you to share?” he mumbled sleepily, uncurling, the cold settling in and giving him shivers.  He eyed the two figures - blonde haired, blue eyed young men. _And damn, wouldn’t I like to be shared between the two of you,_ Chuck thought absently.

 

“I can’t open the door unless you move, man.” The younger boy pointed out before his brother, the one identified as Yancy, waved him back a step and crouched down.

 

“You sleepin’ here, kiddo?”

 

“ ‘m _trying_ ,” Chuck mumbled, shuffling to get up, the thin windbreaker making a bit too much noise.

 

“Yancy..”

 

“Come on Raleigh, chill out. Give him a second.”

 

Yancy was clearly the leader and Raleigh obedient enough to relent.

 

“What’s your name?”

 

"Don't call me kiddo," he mumbled, his wit a little slow to the punch in his sleepy state. " 'm Chuck."

 

“Okay Chuck. How about you come inside with us.” Yancy said. Raleigh, not fond of sharing their safe place, made a small noise behind him but it was ignored.

 

“You can’t sleep out here. You’ll get sick.”

 

"You can get inside?" Chuck asked, wide eyed. "How'd you manage that?"

 

Yancy just smiled and held a forefinger against his nose with a wink. “Stick around and you might learn a few things. But you do gotta move.”

 

Because, as it happened, the door wasn’t actually locked. It was just jammed really fucking tightly and it took Yancy a few vicious tugs to wedge it open - old hinges screaming in protest over the thundering of rain around them.

 

“I’m Yancy,” the older one said and gestured to the other. “That’s my brother Raleigh. Come on. If you die out here tonight, I’ll take it personally.”

 

The noise wasn’t any better inside, louder, even, by way of the corrugated tin roof, but it was dry and that’s what mattered. Heston’s Tools, as it happened, was mostly a warehouse. The door gave way to a narrow hallway with a small office and bathroom to the right and a showroom to the left, with the big storage in the back. it was all mostly empty but the boys, it seemed, had set up camp in the office. Bedrolls were laid out with some other personal items that clearly didn’t belong to the building. Duffle bags piled in a corner. A little electric hotplate sat on one abandoned office desk with a cheap metal frying pan and plastic silverware that had been lifted from the Taco Bell around the corner.Library books and a pad of paper sat on another as though someone were studying. All things considered, it wasn’t a bad little setup. 

Chuck followed after the pair, grateful for not having the rain pouring overhead. He shook the water out of his jacket before entering.

 

"Damn, you guys. . ." Chuck drifted off. "I take it no one comes around here? You guys have a bathroom? Running water?"

 

“Yeah,” Raleigh piped up, shrugging out of his soaking clothes. “Right there, man. help yourself.”

 

“No one has come around yet.” Yancy says, setting the bag he was carrying down and picking at the knot he’d tied in the plastic. “Doesn’t mean they won’t, but we’ve been lucky so far.”

 

"I'm just going to. . ." Chuck drifted off, gesturing toward the bathroom before heading that way. He'd underestimated the number of clothes he'd need and the cost of laundry. He was lucky at the warehouse, however, able to get some soap out of the dispenser to wash them, scrubbing all but the clothing on his back clean. He knew he was in there for quite some time, but couldn't bring himself to care about anything other than finally having clean clothing. He draped the articles over the stalls to dry, letting out a relieved sigh.

Neither of the Beckets could blame him. It gave the brothers a chance to talk amongst themselves. _We don’t know this guy_ , Raleigh had said. Protective of what little they had. Yancy had agreed but countered with the fact that people had done the same for them in the past and you have to pay it forward. If he turned out to be trouble then he would go, but Yancy didn’t think he would be. So the terms were set between them in soft whispers and when a long while had passed and they heard the water finally shut off it was Raleigh who wandered in to lean in the doorway. One thumb tucked behind his belt buckle.

 

“We, uh. We’ve got enough for dinner if you’re hungry?”

 

Chuck turned his head, in the midst of pulling of the windbreaker to clean himself up, feeling disgusting from the lack of shower. "Yeah?" Chuck asked, grinning a bit at him before pulling off his shirt as well. "That'd be great. Haven't eaten for a couple days." And you could see it, Chuck glancing in the mirror at the way his belly had sunken in.

 

“Shit, man..that’s pretty rough.” Raleigh knew that feeling and the way he spoke said as much. Things were going really good for them right now. _Really_ good. He didn’t want to be a pessimist, but he was pretty sure the other foot would drop pretty soon. It always did right when things were looking up.

 

“So.. What’s got you out here?” Casual. Keep it casual. They’re all on the same team.

 

Chuck gave him a look, scrubbing down his torso. "You're really going to ask when I'm practically bathing?" He asked, posing a little bit. "I mean, I know I'm hot," might as well just go with it, Hansen, "but you staring's got me feeling self-conscious. But if you must know, I was heading to Seattle to see my uncle. You?"

 

“I’m not staring!” Raleigh parried almost immediately. And he hadn’t been. Mostly. Maybe a little bit but whose business was that, anyway. Chuck was definitely hot. And definitely getting naked..ish. Shut up.

 

“We, uh.” He said with a small laugh, trying to brush past the quasi-calling out, though he could feel his cheeks were burning a little and he looked away - dragging a hand through his damp hair which only succeeded in making it stick up like a guinea pig. “Our mom died a while ago and dad bailed. Bank took everything so we’re just trying to get our shit together until we can afford a real place and get our sister back.”

Like it was no big deal. Like it happened to lots of people. And he supposed it did. People ended up in the cold for all kinds of reasons.  

Chuck stifled a laugh at the state off Raliegh's hair, turning back to the sink to rinse off. "What happened to your sister? How old are you guys anyways?"

 

“I’m nineteen, Yancy is twenty one. Jazmine is sixteen and..in foster care,” the answer came, though it wasn’t a particularly proud one. “Technically we could take her out but..she’s got a good roof over her head and goes to school and everything so she’s kinda better off without us for now.”

 

And it hurt to say, but it was true. Jaz was better off without them. Besides, even if they did go all the way back to Alaska and get her, where would they go? What would the bring her back to? Heston’s? No way. The State would never allow it for starters. No, they needed a real home. A place with mail that had their names on it. Somewhere with working heating and an actual shower.  

 

“How old are you?”

 

"Eighteen," Chuck lied. "My old man kicked me out," he lied again. "Any idea where your pops went?" Chuck asked fanning his torso with his hands in an attempt to dry himself.

 

“No. He left two years ago. In the middle of the night..reported the credit card he left behind stolen and that was it. He didn’t even say good bye.”

 

He could still remember waking up to Yancy’s screaming on the lawn like it was yesterday. -- _DAD, WHERE ARE YOU GOING? COME BACK!--_ Watching from his bedroom window as his brother ran barefoot in his pajamas down the road. Watching the car speed up and hearing the screech of tires around the corner.

Having had enough, Raleigh tapped the hand dryer mounted next to the door, a shadow crossing his face, thin shoulders sagging from memories he’d rather not deal with right now. Or ever. Ever was good.

 

“It works. Dinner’s ready when you’re done.”

 

And with that he turned and headed back into the other room, suddenly not feeling very social at all.

Chuck couldn't help but frown, even as delighted as he was to have a roof over his head tonight and the idea of food - not to mention the delicious warmth of the hand dryer- he had to feel for the kid. Well, not kid really, he was older than Chuck, but still . No one should have to go through that.  Chuck took off voluntarily and these two boys were thrown out on their asses with nothing.

Chuck finished drying, drying one of the hanging shirts under the dryer, then headed into the office space. "Your brother likes watching handsome strangers undress," Chuck teased as he entered the room.

Raleigh made a small noise and pointedly rolled his eyes whilst Yancy looked up and snorted.

 

“Yeeep, he’ll do that.”

 

“Yancy-”

 

“Nothing we don’t already know, Rals.”

 

“ _Dude_!”

 

“Dude yourself, come here. It’s hot. Hope you like stroganoff, Chuck. Because that is what’s on the menu.”

 

And they had two large soup containers full of it, with a few bread rolls that wouldn’t last one more day. All of which was dished back out of the frying pan into the containers and another that Raleigh had produced from somewhere. Chuck’s equal third was set on the desk and with it a Taco Bell spork.

Chuck grinned at the banter between the two brothers. In honesty, he'd been joking but by the way Raleigh reacted he must have been checking him out. Noted.

 

"You guys are a godsend, really," Chuck murmured, inhaling. "Smells good."

Yancy smiled and the Beckets took their containers in sync, both biting a bit off their respective pieces of bread and dipping the remaining chunk into their food.

 

“I try.” Yancy said with a light shrug, sitting cross-legged on the floor with his back to the wall.

 

“Don’t encourage him.” Raleigh warned, sitting to his brother’s left. But his playful tone betrayed his words. Yancy really was a godsend. Some incredible rock of a human being that could never be discouraged. Could never be stamped down. Twenty one going on forty but an absolute lifeline without whom Raleigh would be completely lost.

Yancy just seemed smug with himself, eating a bit before starting open conversation.

 

“Could help but over hear. You’re headed to Seattle?”

 

"Yeah," Chuck mumbled through a mouthful, too hungry to hold himself back. "My uncle lives there."

 

“Nice. Seattle is pretty awesome. We stopped through once when we were kids. Don’t remember much but I definitely remember seeing the Space Needle. Rals thought it was a rocket ship.”

 

“I was _five_. You _told me it_ _was_.”

 

Yancy just shrugged, turning back to Chuck. “I guess you’re not big into Greyhounds. Probably coulda gotten you there pretty fast. Where are you from, anyway?” Because Chuck definitely had an accent. Yancy would guess but he didn’t want to make the wrong one and asking was always better than looking like an idiot.

 

"I'm originally from Australia. My dad’s in the military and we moved around a lot, ended up in southern California for some time." Chuck picked at the food with his spork. "Greyhounds weren't something I thought about until I was running short on cash."

 

“Ah..yeaah that’ll gettcha.” Yancy answered. Thoughtful. “So you’re here until you get the cash for the bus. How long’ve you been in town? Haven’t seen you around.”

 

"Honestly, only got in a few hours ago,"  Chuck admitted. "Hitched a ride, but this was as far as he was going."

 

“Oh, wow.” Yancy and Raleigh exchanged identical looks, eyebrows pinned high on their foreheads. “Lucky you picked our doorstep, then, huh.”

 

"Very lucky. I'm down to my last few bucks," the younger mumbled in return, putting down the now empty container.

 

“So what’s your plan?” Raleigh asked, mouth still half full of bread.

 

Chuck thought a moment.  “Try to earn some cash, I guess.  Take a bus the rest of the way.  Or find someone I can hitch a ride with.”

 

“Oh, man. You gotta be careful with that. You hear stories..people go missing, turn up hurt or dead.”

 

“Or raped and then dead.” Yancy added, grimly.

 

 _Little too late for the first part,_ Chuck thought, stomach protesting as he remembered the night before.  At least now he was a little bit more comfortable and the company was much better.  “I’ll be alright,” Chuck replied with a shrug after a moment.  “I’ve made it this far.”

 

And neither of the Beckets could deny that. “We’ve done it a bit, ourselves,” Yancy finally admitted, putting his empty bowl down and got up to ruffle through his bag for drinking cups to fill from the sink, coming back with one for all of them, respectively.

 

“But we were with each other. Just promise you’ll be careful, okay? Better to pick up a job for a little while than chance it.”

 

“Yeah, I. . . I think I’m going to try the markets tomorrow, see if anyone needs a hand or might be travelling up to Seattle.  Doesn’t hurt, I guess.”

 

“Not a bad idea. But, in the meantime, I guess you’re stuck with us. If you can handle Raleigh’s oogling.”

 

“You are such an asshole, I wasn’t even!”

 

Yancy just laughed. “You’re so easy,” and then looked to Chuck. “It’s the little things.”

 

“You say ‘stuck’ as if you didn’t just bring me out of the rain and feed me.  Totally fine, really.  Eyes are one thing,” Chuck murmured, looking to Raleigh and giving him a wink.  “Hands are another, yeah?”

 

“Oh my god,” Raleigh moaned, tilting backwards to fight the urge to punch both of them on the nose. “I hate both of you!”

  
Again, Yancy just laughed.


	2. No one likes goodbyes, anyway.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little hurt, a little comfort, and some sexy stuff. And hey, who needs all these confusing feelings, anyway!?

The rest of the night was peaceful enough. Pleasant, even, with banter stretching long into the night much to (mostly) Raleigh’s dismay. But it was all in good fun. And it was nice to hang out with someone else who wasn’t looking to get anything from them or exploit them, somehow. Chuck wasn’t dangerous or seedy, just a kid traveling through after his dad kicked him out. It made sense to the Beckets and they all settled down to part ways in the morning. 

Raleigh produced a bag of peanuts from somewhere and gifted them over and Yancy gave Chuck directions towards the markets before setting off for work. It was simple. Amicable. It was nice to part as friends. And while Raleigh know, objectively, he would probably never see Chuck again, he still said See Ya Later as opposed to goodbye. 

No one likes goodbyes, anyway. 

And just like that, things went back to normal. Raleigh tottered around the place for a while before going to his own part time job at a video store and their routine remained what it had been for the last few months. It was nice, that job. One of those Videos Aren’t Dead hipster places that paid in cash and didn’t declare you as a worker to skimp on their own taxes. Perfect, basically.

It was probably pretty bad of Raleigh to think, but when he didn’t see Chuck the next night or even the next few nights, he told himself he was glad. That meant the kid had found a place for himself and was working, or he’d found a (safe) ride to his uncle’s place and all was right with the world. 

Would have been selfish to want him to hang around in any case. 

Chuck found the place again a few nights later, stumbling by pretty late. He hoped they’d be home, or whatever it is they considered this place. Chuck was in bad shape and he needed help, hoping the brothers wouldn’t ask too many questions. He thought he could make good money quick, but instead he’d been violated, beaten, and the little he’d owned had been taken. All he had now was the clothes on his back and a few injuries that made him walk a little funny. He tapped lightly on the door, leaning heavily against the wall.

And a tapping on their door was never a good sign. Namely because no one ever did it, and it almost wasn’t heard except that it repeated a few minutes later which caused it’s single occupant to go on high alert. 

Yancy had been working late that night on Closing duty and wouldn’t be due back for another three hours, so it was up to Raleigh, who had been lost in a book, to get up, pick up the crowbar they had found in the warehouse, and quietly creep to the front door. Ready to swing if he had to. 

“Who is it?” He asked, putting on his best bravado. 

“It’s Chuck,” the younger man rasped out in return. “I need help.”

“Chuck..shit, okay. Just stand to the side, okay? I have to ram the door.” A fair enough warning. The thing really was a pain in the ass to open and was definitely not fire safe. 

Raleigh wasn’t small for nineteen, but he could have been bigger. He was thin and baby faced, with the potential to be pretty strong but his focus was more on making money and sleeping safe than how much he could lift. Yancy called him a twink. Raleigh told him to go fuck himself. 

In any case, he reared back and held his crow bar, ramming the door enough to wedge the tool in and pry the metal door open past the first few inches, after which he could scrape the damn thing open enough to let Chuck in. 

Chuck who looked like absolute shit. 

Raleigh felt his stomach drop. 

“Fuck, man, what happened?” He asked, quickly beckoning for him to come inside. It was too dark to really see what shape Chuck was in, they’d need to go to the bathroom for that, but the way he was hunched over and wheezing sure didn’t mean anything good. 

“I don’t really wanna talk about it,” Chuck wheezed, stumbling in. He couldn’t help the pained noise he made the first few steps, every part of him aching. “I just. . . need to get cleaned up. Safe place to sleep for the night,” he insisted.

“Yeah, course.”

Raleigh put the crowbar back through the door pull and dragged it back with a grunt, bracing his foot on the door jab to get enough leverage to really close it. He thought the hinges has rusted and then dropped which put the full weight of the thing on it’s outer bottom corner but he didn’t know enough about that stuff to fix it. And, really, the more people thought the door was locked the better. 

Job done, he slid the took back out and tentatively followed Chuck back down the hall. The place’s front windows had long been boarded shit but they made a rule to keep the lights off (how they still worked was anyone’s guess) as much as possible. This, though, counted as one of the rare times they were turned on and he moved past the kid to do so in the bathroom, flicking the row of dirty fluorescent strip bulbs to life. The flickered a few times, highlighting just how much crust they had accumulated inside their plastic covers, but light was light.

“You really are a godsend,” Chuck reminded him, heading into the bathroom and starting to wash up. He pulled off his shirt, stained with blood, to reveal the bruises over his torso. It wasn’t clear where the blood had come from, he didn’t have any open wounds on his chest or back, but it had leaked through to his skin anyways. He squeezed out soap from the dispenser, frantically scrubbing himself with nails and all, skin becoming raw.

“Do you. . . happen to have any aspirin? Ibuprofen?” Chuck asked, hyperaware of the younger brother’s presence.

“Uh..” Raleigh had to think. “Maybe. Lemme look,” he said and turned back, going into the office to rifle through their bags. He knew they did, in fact, have a bottle of something but that shit was expensive and they tried to use it as little as possible. Raleigh was prone to getting headaches but it was only because he needed glasses when he was reading which, annoyingly, Yancy made him to a lot more than he thought he needed to.

“Found ‘em.” He said from the other room, popping the bottle open and emptying it’s meagre contents into his hand. Six left. He reasoned they could part with two.

“Advil, alright?” He asked, returning and holding out the two little pink pills. Candy coated like most things in America. But the sight of Chuck was point blank distracting and Raleigh ended up sort of stuttering to a halt just past the door with his hand held out.  
“Jesus,” His eyes widened. “Someone kicked the shit out of you.”

Well, obviously yes. That wasn’t exactly what he had tried to say but it had come out that way, anyhow. Raleigh Becket, professional orator, ladies and gentlemen. 

"Kicked the shit out of me, stole my shit, and kicked the shit out of me again for good measure," Chuck grumbled, the words choked. His eyes stung with impending tears, the reality setting in now that he was somewhere safe. He braced himself for the impending 'told you so's.

They didn’t come. Raleigh didn’t say a damn thing for several moments as he took the information and processed it. His expression darkening. His hands curling into fists. He, they, hadn’t known Chuck for more than a night but that meant nothing in the grand scheme of all this. They’d taken him in and sent him back out. Raleigh assumed Chuck had moved on already but-

-god, maybe if they’d insisted he stay with them until he figured his shit out..

Maybe this wouldn’t have happened. 

It’s only when the silence grew to something overbearing that Raleigh realized he’d caused it at all, and took a shaky breath in an attempts to rein back the rage that burbled in his gut. Sure, he and his brother had some some pretty seedy sexual things to make money that neither of them wanted to ever talk about, but this.. this was fucking serious.

“Who,” He asked, barely a whisper as the words lodged in his throat. “Do you remember what they looked like?” 

It was only when the silence was broken that Chuck finally broke down, scrubbing at his face with his hands to hide the tears. He’d fucked up, fucked up so bad. He didn’t need to be living like this. He could have just stayed home, lived with the looks his father gave him, lived with the way he felt so disconnected from everyone in his life. Instead, this happens. It was once some grand adventure. Now, Chuck had created his own hell. How stupid of him, he should have known better. 

He slumped to the floor. “He. . . he looked-” There was no way he could forget, the image burned into his mind, but the words wouldn’t come, got stuck in his throat. “I’m so fucking stupid,” came instead. “I should have known. I should have protected myself. He took everything.”

The little money he had, the duffel full of clothing and toiletries, the wallet with his identifications -- all gone. At least he still had his virginity. He’d denied the man that, told him that he could use his mouth or his hands and he’d gotten angry, beat him until he was spitting up blood, then took everything he owned to add insult.

“He took everything,” he repeated, shoulders shaking with the force of his sobs.

“Hey.. hey come on..” Raleigh said, anger giving way to his concern. He couldn’t stand there and fume with Chuck on the floor sobbing. It just wasn’t going to happen. 

He was angry, sure, furious, but consoling the other took precedence and Raleigh closed the five or so feet between them, kneeling down and carefully pulling Chuck into his arms. In truth, Raleigh had no idea what to do, if this was the right thing, but it felt natural and so he went with it. Holding him close, a hand flat on the other’s back moving in small, soothing circles. How Yancy always did to him when he needed it.

“Shhh, you’re okay. You’re gonna be okay, I promise. You’re not stupid. This wasn’t your fault.”

“It was!” Chuck insisted, halfheartedly trying to pull away. Too bad he was too weak and Raleigh’s arms so inviting. Instead, he ended up leaning against him. “I’m so stupid. I shouldn’t have. . . I shouldn’t have tried to take the easy way out.”

Raleigh was quiet for another long moment, pulling Chuck a little closer, hand still rolling circles across his spine. 

“Were you tryin’ to turn a trick or something?” He finally asked. Quiet. Tentative.

Chuck swallowed thickly, trying to hold back his sobs. He nodded.

Ah, man. “Come here. You’re okay.” But Chuck was right. He was fucking stupid. That was a fucking stupid thing to do. And, okay, it was a stupid thing that both the Beckets had done, but that had nothing to do with it. Still, Raleigh tried to think of what Yancy would do in this situation. What he’d say. 

“Do you wanna go to the police? File charges?”

“NO!” Chuck snapped immediately. Going to the police meant that someone might find him, they’d send him home. He didn’t want to go back to his father, there wasn’t any love in that house.

“Chuck, someone hurt you-”

“And what am I supposed to say? I was whoring myself! I’m a fucking runaway! Do you have any idea whats going to happen if I do?”

“You say he attacked you, kicked the crap out of you, and-” God, he could barely say it, but on some level he knew Chuck had a point. 

Chuck was glad that Raleigh didn’t take notice of his slip. “I just can’t, okay?” 

“Right…” A pause. There was so much in Raleigh’s head that it took him a moment to process what he’d just heard. Now probably wasn’t the time, Chuck was having a full on meltdown, but the filter from brain to mouth wasn’t always Raleigh’s strong point. “Wait.” He said, the gears in his head almost audible as they clicked and whirred, glancing down at the boy in his arms. “You’re a runaway?”

Shit.

Shit, shit shit.

“N-no, no I’m not!” Chuck insisted immediately. “You’re hearing things.”

“Bullshit.”

Chuck was silent a few long moments, slowly releasing Raleigh’s shirt. When the hell did he grab onto the shirt in the first place? “I ran away,” he said slowly. “I lied. My dad didn’t kick me out. I’m only. . . I’m only seventeen.”

Raleigh’s brow furrowed. This was getting worse and worse with every passing second. 

“I,” He started but fell silent after a moment, throat working. He wet his lips. “Huh…”

Truthfully, Raleigh didn’t know what to make of this. Chuck’s revelation didn’t help what had just happened to him. It didn’t make it any better. The fact that he’d lied didn’t make it any easier to right the injustice of it. This wasn’t a pros and cons list. If anything it just became so much worse, and it was difficult to find some kind of appropriate response. 

“Why didn’t you just say?”

Chuck couldn’t find the words, just stared into his lap. It was all so stupid and he was so stubborn. Why didn’t he just go home? Call his Dad, stop torturing himself like this?

Raleigh could barely believe this was happening. Seriously, of all the times Yancy wasn’t there. He would have known what to do. Another few moments passed and Raleigh found he still had his hand on Chuck’s back. Still had him pulled close, and he was reluctant to let go. He wondered if he should be mad. If he should feel lied to. But that was stupid, wasn’t it? Being mad about Chuck lying when he’d been so viciously hurt. It wasn’t comparable.

“I think..maybe you should go home, man. Your family probably misses you.”

And the streets sure as hell weren’t safe. 

“He doesn’t miss me!” Chuck snapped. “He’s been waiting for years to be rid of me. Now he doesn’t. . . doesn’t have to. I can’t go back.”

“That’s nuts. You sound nuts.” Raleigh protested, shaking him a little. “A home is a home, man. You’ve seen first hand what bein’ out here is like. Why would you choose that?” 

“He blames me for Mum’s death. The way. . . he looks at me, the way he treats me, it’s like he’s disgusted with me. And he should be. It was my fault.”

Raleigh winced. Suddenly Chuck made a bit more sense and the pang in his chest grew. He knew a thing or two about dads reacting badly to mom’s deaths. And he wondered if the same thing might have happened in his house had his dad stuck around. 

“I can’t pretend to know the details..” He began, speaking softly as he shifted a little bit to sit properly instead of on his aching knees. “But I dunno. I mean, unless you actually literally killed her I doubt that’s it.” Raleigh paused, teenage imagination very active. “You didn’t...did you?”

“NO! I’d never do that to her. I loved her. Just... she got into the accident because of me. I might as well have.”

“Ah, Chuck.. Man, you can’t do that to yourself.” Raleigh nearly sighed, daring to move his hand from Chuck’s back to the base of his neck and thumb at little auburn baby hairs.

Chuck’s breath caught at the gesture of affection and he couldn’t take it. He didn’t deserve the affection. He was a stupid, stupid kid. He pulled away, tears beginning anew. And doing so had Raleigh pulling back as well, suddenly very aware that he was basically forcing a trauma victim to be held.

So he let him go, feeling totally helpless as he searched Chuck’s face for some kind of clue.

“You didn’t kill your mom, Chuck. And I don’t think your dad hates you. You should go home.”

Chuck shook his head. “I can’t go back now.”

“No, now is exactly the time you should go. You can’t stay out here.”

“I’ll ... I’ll try,” he lied. “Can I... can I please stay? For a night or two?” Chuck asked hopefully.

“Yeah, course, man.” Raleigh said gently. How would he be able to turn Chuck out into the cold. He would have to be heartless. And Raleigh was nothing if not heart.

“But,” And there was always a but. “You gotta tell me everything you can about the creep who did this to you. And you can’t ever try to turn tricks again. Guys like us?” And he thought maybe they were the same in that regard, or at the very least similar. Honestly, he was still figuring himself out. “We get killed out here for stuff like that. You’re my friend. I don’t wanna find your body in the gutter.”

Chuck swallowed thickly. “Can we. . . not talk about that tonight?” he asked, voice cracking. He didn’t want to remember it at all, especially not now.

Raleigh watched him for a long moment before relenting with a small nod. “Yeah. Sure.”  
He didn’t really want to talk about it either, but the need to do something was overwhelming. And he couldn’t do much unless he knew who did it. Vicious plans were already creeping through his mind. He had a knife. He was fast. He and Yancy could grab the guy and fuck him up. Teach him that you don’t fucking beat people and maybe even get Chuck his stuff back. 

He swallowed. Wet his lips again. “Do you wanna..wash up. I’ll make something to eat?”

“Y-yeah. That would be. . . thanks, yeah.”

“Okay.” And what more could he do? Raleigh pushed himself up and realized he was still holding the Advil, the coating having long stained red smudges of dye into his palm. He set the tablets on the edge of the sink and gave a small, sympathetic smile before turning and heading back out into the office, returning only to fill the frying pan with water to boil. With ramen noodles being like 35 cents a packet he and Yancy always tried to keep a good stock because while his job meant fresh food was usually available, they’d learned the hard way that a Good Thing could be gone in an instant. And now..well. Chuck had nothing. Cooking him dinner was the least he could do while he kicked himself for ever letting the kid go off alone in the first place. 

The routine was the same as it had been the other night. Cook and partition. Hollar when it was ready. Raleigh had done double just for good measure and reasoned that Yancy wouldn’t be mad. His brother was a good guy like that and he wasn’t due back for hours, yet.

“Oh-” He said aloud halfway through cooking, abandoning the noodles to rifle through his duffle before coming back to the bathroom, a wadded up tee shirt in hand

“Here. Your shirt had stuff on it… Um. I have another pair of pants if you wanna, like. Wash yours.”

Chuck was already scrubbing at his own shirt, pushing himself to do something instead of wallow in self pity. “Yeah? Thanks, really,” he murmured, hanging the shirt over the stall. At least he got most of the blood out. “You really are... something.” He couldn’t find the right word. Just a few nights ago he’d been teasing the younger brother about oogling him but now the tables had turned. He saw Raleigh as a god. Beautiful, generous. It was hard to stay away. It may have just been because he was vulnerable and was glad for someone to be taking care of him, but he couldn’t help the flush to his cheeks. “Thank you,” he repeated, making sure he was clean enough before putting on the shirt. 

And it was a shame because Raleigh was really just a normal guy. He didn’t consider himself anything special and being decent to someone wasn’t any reason to see him as a god. But here they were. And he couldn’t deny the need to care for Chuck was strong. 

“It’s fine, really,” he insisted, still reeling from the whirlwind that was Hurricane Chuck, pulling back out into the office to find said pair of pants and offer them before going to check the noodles. 

“Foods up.” Raleigh announced as he turned the hotplate off and plated up. It was nice to not have to worry about stuff like food right now. Stuff like having a safe place to sleep. Actually sleeping instead of keeping an eye open and not getting any actual rest at all. Damn, how did they ever end up here. 

“You know I was wondering if I was ever gonna see you again.” He called over his shoulder, taking his share and folding back into his little spot against the wall. The same place Yancy had sat last time they’d all eaten together. He was determined to make the best of a bad situation but was pretty ignorant to What You’re Supposed To Do in these situations. He figured food and a change of clothes and a safe place with some company was all he had to offer...and hopefully that would be good enough. And then later he’d go and find the jackass that did this and tear him a new one. 

"You miss me?" Chuck teased, trying to mask his pain with humor. He entered a few minutes later, Raleigh's shirt just on the side of too big for him. He was grateful, though. It was better than sitting in his own blood.

He was lucky, very very lucky. The man could have taken much more from him. Sure, he was bruised and bloody, could barely walk straight and didn't have anything to his name anymore, but at least he was alive.

And realizing just how easy it was to be thankful for that simple fact opened all kinds of doors. Because when you fall you think there’s never anywhere lower to fall to. There always is. 

“Little bit.” Raleigh answered, gesturing first to where he laid his pants out and then to Chuck’s noodles. 

“Is that bad?”

Chuck sat across from him with a cocky smirk. "It might be. Depends on why you missed me."

Now was not a good time to make an oogling joke. Don’t do it. Just don’t do it, Raleigh. “Your charming personality and space heating abilities?” 

The other man chuckled in return. "You sure it's not because I'm crazy sexy?"

“Also because you’re crazy sexy.”Raleigh said, gesturing up and down Chuck with his spork, mouth full of noodles. “Jailbait, but crazy sexy.” 

"Hey, I'm legal in some states," Chuck protested, grin wide.

“Oh-ho man,” Raleigh laughed. He was smiled but shook his head a little, glancing down to hide the burning in his cheeks. “You’re trouble is what you are.”

"Is that a blush I see?" Chuck taunted. "It is, isn't it! I was just teasing but you are really into me aren't you?" That's it, Chuck, defect. Deflect deflect deflect.

The other teen let out an exasperated sigh before pushing a hand against one of his cheeks. It was warm. Of course. “Shut up. You just want me to be.”

And this was just banter, wasn’t it, so what did it matter what Raleigh really thought, anyway. 

“Heckle me a little more. Come on, get it out, dingo.” 

"Dingo?!"

“Yeah, dingo.” Raleigh shot back. “If you’re gonna make fun of me, fine, but you have to be able to take it as much as you give it.” 

Chuck quieted, playing with his spork. "I... have a hard time 'taking it' right now," he mumbled.

“Ah, shit..” For a moment, one brief blessed moment, Raleigh had forgotten. Which was insane considering the state of his companion but.. well, But nothing. He was just an idiot. 

“I didn’t mean… That was fucked up. I’m an asshole.” 

"No arguing there, mate." Chuck's shields raised again.

Raleigh fell quiet, suddenly losing his appetite and putting his soup to the side. He didn’t know what he was supposed to say, here.

He had a million burning questions but they all had to do with what happened in some capacity and Chuck had already said he didn’t want to talk about it that night. Or at all, probably, but that wasn’t really going to be an option so far as Raleigh was concerned. 

He drummed his fingers on his knee. 

“So… Uh. Do you play any sports? Australians play Rugby, right? The Chooks?” 

Chuck snorted. "I haven't lived there since I was ten. No sports, not really. Occasionally football with friends but real football."

“You mean soccer. I at least get points for knowing a team, though, right?” Asked with a hopeful smile. Recovery might be possible.

Chuck grinned. "Yeah, I'll give you points for that. Dork." 

Success, and Raleigh basked in it for a moment. “Yess. Okay, so no sports. What are you into? What kind of stuff do you like?”

"Uh... comic books? Video games?" Chuck offered with a shrug. “'S’not like I can enjoy any of that now."

“Now you are definitely wrong.” Raleigh said, wagging a finger lightly before picking his noodles back up. Comics were something he could totally talk about. “There’s a comic shop like ten blocks from here and the dude who runs it is super chill. I’ve spent whole days in there talking Marvel with him. What do you read? You’re speakin’ my language.” 

"What don't I read?" Chuck countered with a goofy grin. "What's your favorite?"

“Cap. It’s gotta be Cap. He’s awesome and I’ll fight anyone who says otherwise.” 

"Not that I don't like Cap, but seriously, Iron Man," Chuck countered.

“Ohh..yeah. I can give you that. They’re good together, though. In the Avengers, I mean. Like they piss each other off but they get shit done. And I think their fighting is really just some stupid attempt at being friends.” A beat. “If Tony were any good at making friends.”

Raleigh spoke as though he’d had this conversation before. Many times. At great length and probably much to Yancy’s dismay. “And I mean,” He continued, pausing to drink the broth in his bowl. “It’s gotta be hard, right? Everyone and everything Cap has even known is gone. But there’s Iron Man being just like his dad and Cap knew his dad.” 

He shrugged. “Complicated, man. The suit, though. That is wicked cool. I’d totally have one.” 

Chuck had a look of adoration on his face. "Seriously," he said lightly, "you're such a dork."

“And you love it.” 

The younger man chuckled. "Maybe."

“Definitely,” Raleigh winked, obnoxious was it was. “I’m justifying your own nerdiness. Oh man, though. Have you seen the Age of Ultron trailer? The comic guy had it on his computer. It’s gonna be amazing. I gotta find a way to see it when it comes out.” 

"I've seen posters for it. I'm really excited, I hope I'll be able to see it," Chuck agreed. "Maybe you can get an 'in' with the comic guy?" he suggested. "Maybe he'd like some company when he goes and you can convince him to take you?"

“Hey, there’s an idea. Maybe If we do some free work for him we could score tickets in. Not just a hatrack, are you.” 

"Excuse me?" Chuck laughed.

“A hatrack. Like your head is more useful than for just puttin- I don’t know, Yancy says it. Look, I’m saying you’re smart.”

Chuck snorted out a laugh. "Well Yancy needs to update his phrase book. Sounds like an old man."

“Yeah,” Raleigh agreed with a smile. “He does.” 

There was a silence between them, Chuck picking at his noodles. His feelings toward Raleigh were growing and he knew they shouldn’t be. They were both essentially homeless and Chuck had just been assaulted so he shouldn’t want to snuggle up against him right now. There was something about the Beckets -- not just Raleigh, Yancy, too -- that was just nice. They were good people with warm smiles and witty banter and there was something about them that made Chuck want to stay.

They held a sort of magnetism that made you want to be around them. A sort of genuine kindness that rang true. Bright, friendly, warm. The Beckets were good people. 

Raleigh, himself, was mostly at a loss for what to do, though. He’d been slipping and sliding ever since Chuck had shown back up and it seemed like anything he said had the potential to make the other kid feel bad. He didn’t want Chuck to feel bad. Yancy still wasn’t due back for a while yet, though, which left Raleigh trying to awkwardly navigate on his own. And he wasn’t particularly good at silence. Silence made him think, and he didn’t much care for that. 

“There, uh.” He attempted some minutes later, grasping for anything. “There isn’t a whole lot to do here. But I’ve got a few books. Or if you wanted to go to sleep.. You can take my sleeping bag. You know, I think. Like you should have your own space if you want it.”

It wasn’t much but it was all he could offer. A cuddle just didn’t feel like a good thing to offer but he wouldn’t say no, either. Some people needed that. Some people absolutely didn’t. 

Chuck made a dramatic pout. “Oh, you mean you’re offering your sleeping bag when you’re not going to be in it? Ruuuude.”

“Are… Are you kidding?” Raleigh asked, actually looking startled. “Wouldn’t it be, like, really fucked up if I didn’t?”

Chuck dropped his head, looking into his lap. “I uh- y-yeah, it’s stupid, sorry. Just trying to lighten the mood.”

“No- I.” Raleigh fumbled for words as well, sighing and dragging his hands through his hair. He thought, in the end, honesty was always the best policy. “I just don’t know how to help you, man. I don’t wanna make you uncomfortable.” 

Which he already had by accident and didn’t want to do again. 

“I don’t want to say something and make it worse, you know?” Raleigh said, scooting forward a little to tentatively brush the back of a finger against Chuck’s crossed ankle.

“But whatever you need from me, just say. You wanna share a sleeping bag, that’s cool. You want it to yourself, that’s cool, too.” And he meant that with the whole of himself, though he did follow up a moment later with a small, dopey grin, and ducked to make Chuck look him right in the eye. 

“I am a pretty great cuddler, though. Just so you know.”

Chuck froze a little at the brush of his finger. He chewed his lip, nearly caving in on himself when Raliegh looked him in the eyes. 

“I just don’t want to feel alone. For once.” He was quiet when he said it, not giving anymore direction than that. He left his words to Raleigh’s interpretation. And Raleigh gently took his words, eyebrows drawing together as he tapped Chuck’s ankle with the back side of his fingers again. 

“You don’t have to feel alone. I’m right here.” 

"Thank you. So much, for everything," Chuck mumbled. "Is it too much... to ask for a hug?"

“No,” Raleigh breathed, and if it was any quieter you might be able to hear his heart break in the name of Chuck Hansen. “No, it’s not. Come here,” He said, scooting closer. It was a little awkward but easy enough to right them as he drew the younger boy into his arms just as he had in the bathroom. 

Chuck rested his head on the other man’s shoulder, arms loose around him. It scared him how much like home this felt, this place that wasn’t theirs, wasn’t his. Being here felt more like home than living alone with his father ever did, but he knew it wasn’t right to keep sticking around. Raleigh and Yancy had their own lives to deal with, without him fucking it up. He’d stay till morning and they’d part ways, Chuck decided.

They stayed like that for a long time, pitching back so Raleigh could rest against the wall, Chuck in his arms. And again he brought his hand up to card through Chuck’s hair. Gently. Soothing. Holding him close without being restrictive. 

“That feels... nice,” Chuck murmured, a little unused to the affection. Not that he wanted him to stop or anything.

“Mm?” Raleigh glanced down. “I’m glad. I want you to feel good.”

“I could say something here, but I think that would be a little inappropriate.”

“Somehow I don’t think that’s gonna stop you.”

Chuck ducked his head. “If. . . we had met tonight under different circumstances I would say that I can think of a few ways you can make me feel good.”

“Yeah, that’s…” Raleigh laughed a bit but only because he wasn’t sure what else to do and tipped his face down to rest his chin in Chuck’s hair. “Probably not appropriate, no.” 

He let a beat pass. 

“For what it’s worth? If we’d met under different circumstances? I’d be totally up for hearing your ideas. Assuming you’re not still making fun of me.”

Chuck laughed. “So you are into me, aren’t you?” He pressed into his neck before pulling back after a pause to speak into his ear. “It’s okay. I’m totally into you. Not making fun now.”

“Really?” Raleigh couldn’t hide the surprise in his voice and looked at him with wide eyes and raised eyebrows. “You’re serious.” 

Chuck pulled away, scooting a few feet back. “Y-yeah. Serious.” He was met with a smile as the other’s uncertainty slowly dissipated. 

“Mm..well. You were right, I may as well admit it.” He said simple, wetting his bottom lip. Raleigh hadn’t expected it to go this way. He glanced at the floor for a moment, stalling, idly picking at his shoelace before looking back up. “I am into you, Chuck.”

Chuck’s eyes darted up and he reigned in a grin. He was still hurting, but at least now he had something. Someone who wanted him, who was already was showing him compassion. “You really mean that?”

“Yeah. I do. I mean I’ve known you like a day? But I think so.” And there was an earnest answer if Chuck had ever heard one, delivered with big blue puppy eyes and everything. 

“Shit,” Chuck mumbled, not wholly in control of his mouth. “You’re kind of really... Christ, that look is adorable.”

“What look? What am I kind of really?” 

“That puppy dog look. That, right there!” Chuck gestured to his face. “Now, you’re not allowed to use that.”

“I’m not! This is just my face!” The blonde protested, but he clearly knew he was doing it which only made him do it more. Furrow his brow and widen his eyes and part plush, pink lips. He even went so far as to whine a little. 

“Christ... you... you...“ Chuck began, at a loss for words. “Ugh!”

Raleigh smiled briefly and whined a little more, leaning forward to make up the space between them. “Me?”

“Why... ugh, you’re too cute,” Chuck grumbled.

“Too cute,” The other said and leaned in a little more, clearly enjoying the attention. “Is that a thing?” 

“Apparently so. It’s tying my tongue.”

“I can deal with that.” 

Chuck snorted. “You’re a dork,” he mumbled.

“And you’re cute when you’re flustered,” Raleigh answered with a grin. He could get used to this. Having someone like Chuck in his life. But the kid had much bigger problems and he was going to his uncle’s, anyway. He wasn’t actually homeless like Raleigh. What did he have to offer him? 

“I’m cute all the time,” Chuck assured, moving closer. “You just haven’t known me long enough to figure that out.”

“Oh?” The other asked, the corner of his mouth twisting with a crooked, dopey smile. “And how do you suggest we fix that?”

“Maybe... we should spend a bit more time together?” Chuck suggested, though he knew it wouldn’t happen. He should be away in the morning, but it was a happy thought to hope. “If you’d like, that is.”

“I would, actually. I’d really like that.” 

Chuck beamed. “So would I.”

It was impossible to resist Chuck’s smile. How his eyes lit up, how his dimples flashed. It was a wonder Raleigh didn’t reach up and poke him in one with awe and wonder, though he made a mental note to look into that later. 

“So... uh...” Chuck started awkwardly. “What now?” 

“So maybe, you know. Maybe stick around a little bit? I mean, you don’t wanna get to Seattle all bruised up. And we gotta find a way to get you there. That could take a little while.” Raleigh paused. “And I think you just asked me out. So there’s that.”

Another pause. “I said yes, by the way.”

Chuck chewed his lip before his face was consumed with another grin. “Yeah?” Maybe he’d stick around. A little while, at least. “You could... always try to come with me. To Seattle?”

The suggestion made Raleigh fumble a little, but the look on his face was plain. He was absolutely considering the logistics. 

“Yeah, maybe. I mean, I dunno Yancy has a good job and we both work under the counter. We’re like half way to the money we need to get a real apartment. But maybe. I’d have to see what my brother thinks.”

And rightly so. That was the adult response as much as it loathed Raleigh to give it. They couldn’t just up and leave, right? Or could they?

“In the meantime,” He continued, edging ever closer, still, having to lean right in and only stopping a few inches away from the other’s face. “I was hoping maybe..” Raleigh wet lips lips, gathering the courage to just go for it.

“Maybe what?” Chuck asked, trying to keep his voice level. It was a little obvious what Raleigh was getting at but might as well have a little fun seeing him work for it.

“Maybe…” Hnngh why did it have to be so hard. He could never just pull his finger out when it came to these kinds of thing. The blonde flushed and ducked his head for a beat.

“C’mon.”

“C’mon what? What are you hoping for Raleigh? Tell me.”

“Don’t be an asshole.”

“That’s a little hard for me,” Chuck teased, leaning close. “Now, what are you thinking?”  
Raleigh nearly growled in return. They were almost touching and it was just cruel at this point as the vibrations of words could be felt ghosting over the lips of the other. “I’m thinking,” He said slowly. Pointedly. “That I wanna kiss you.” 

"What are you waiting for, a written invite?" Chuck teased, Raleigh's breath sending a shiver down his spine. The other boy considered a rebuttal but they were already so close and Chuck’s challenge was gladly accepted. Raleigh, in the end, said nothing. And instead simply surged forward and closed the space between them with a kiss that was mostly on the chaste side. All soft lips and slightly tentative. He pulled back a hair, gaze flicking to read the younger boy. And then all of a sudden it wasn’t chaste any more as his eagerness took hold and he surged forward again - the need to just conquer Chuck’s smart ass mouth overwhelming him. It wasn’t the most refined kiss, all tongue and teeth and maybe a little wet, but it was a kiss none the less. It was their kiss. 

When Raleigh had pulled back, it left Chuck a little confused. He was about to ask 'that's it?' but then his lips were back, tongue working into Chuck's mouth. The younger boy let out a whine, pulling Raleigh closer. He wasn't too fond of the coppery taste his split lip had caused, but at the same time, maybe it added to the heat of the kiss.

Raleigh didn’t seem to mind either way. He didn’t even seem to realize by the force in which he connected them, moving to tangle the two together. Raleigh was older. Bigger. He felt responsible for taking control. Not that he minded, anyway. Initial hesitation over, he was more than happy to cup Chuck by the cheeks and kiss him hard and greedy before slowing back down again the take the kid’s lower lip between his own and run his tongue over it. That’s when he noticed the split, or rather that was when he remembered it, and felt guilty that he’d probably just made it worse. His apology came in the form of another soft kiss. Then two. 

Chuck pulled back slightly, only to carefully maneuver into Raleigh's lap, straddling his thighs. He pressed their lips together again greedily, ignoring the slight pain from his lip in order to map out the other man' s mouth with his tongue, to nip at his lip, to demand just as much as Raleigh had.

Hands raised to card through soft, ginger hair and a little breathless came from Raleigh as Chuck got into his lap. If his cock was interested before, it certainly was now, and strained against his jeans. He let his hands roam, releasing the other’s hair and running down his bruised sides to push up under the shirt he’d only just dawned. Angry bruises were already forming over Chuck’s hips and ribs and Raleigh tried to be tender but he was excited and just wanted to touch. Touch and learn the other boy as much as he could, hungry for the contact. For what felt like miles of soft, freckled skin under his fingers as he slid his hands down the back of his pants to grasp Chuck’s perfect, round ass.

“You’re so hot,” he mumbled through their kiss, breaking contact to nip and tease along his jaw and neck (also bruised, he noted grimly).

Chuck let out a little whimper at the touches, some eliciting pain, but mostly lighting his nerves on fire. He couldn’t help but grind down into Raleigh’s lap, seeking out friction, especially when he felt his hands on his ass. “Ray,” he whined at his words, cheeks flushed, pulling away from the kiss to press his face into his neck, panting heavily. This was definitely not how he expected the evening to go, but he didn’t have any complaints.   
“Mmm~?” Raleigh hummed, lips working at the join of Chuck’s neck and shoulder, working a bruise of his own into pale skin as they ground together, eager fingers still fondling what Raleigh could only describe as a perfect ass. 

“Feels good,” Chuck managed to say, mind to focused on what Raleigh was doing to offer anything else. His own hands worked on pulling Raleigh’s shirt up, hands greedily touching every inch of skin he could find. And whatever he was doing to his neck just had him melting against him, mind screaming out for more. “Please,” he whined, though he didn’t know exactly what he was asking for.

Which sucks for him because Raleigh broke his quest to leave the world’s biggest hickey a moment later to ask him, “What, Chuck. Please what.” The Blonde smiled against Chuck’s neck, continuing his trail of lovebites and taking it as a small, personal revenge for Chuck making him literally ask to kiss him like fifteen minutes ago. 

“Christ, just. . . more of that, whatever that is,” Chuck babbled, nails now slightly digging into the other man’s back. ”Raleigh,” he sighed happily, pressing a few kisses of his own to his neck, just trying to find something else to do, to reciprocate in some way.

Raleigh hummed again, working back up Chuck’s throat and jaw for another kiss. Again, soft but firm. “That can be arranged.”

Chuck squirmed a little, pants feeling way too tight now. He nipped at the older boy’s ear. “Please, Raleigh,” he panted. “Un, it feels really good.” His shoulder was a little tender, his ribs ached, parts of him throbbed, but it was all overshadowed by what Raleigh was doing and he needed to keep doing it. There was no reason to stop and Raleigh had no intention of doing so. 

“Here,” The older boy said in a hoarse whisper, gently pulling them both to the right to lay on the floor.

“Actually, C’mon. Better idea.” And he scrambled to his feet, erection painfully obvious and painfully prominent in his jeans that been, before, just on the side of baggy but slightly too short. Raleigh stood and offered a hand to help pull Chuck to his feet before practically tugging him over to where he and Yancy had their sleeping bags set up in the corner.

And then in a second he was back to pushing his hands up Chuck’s shirt and guiding him down onto their nest, joining him a beat later and reclaiming his lips. A hand pawed up over Chuck’s chest, fingers playing across a pebbled nipple. He twined their legs together, supporting himself over Chuck on his elbow with that hand behind the ginger’s head so he could get his fingers in that hair again. 

“God, you taste good.” Even with the blood and sweat and dirt Chuck tasted good. 

"T-thanks?" Chuck stuttered, a little confused but really, really turned on, probably enough that he'd agree to anything Raleigh said. He pulled the other man close, grinding up against him in a desperate attempt to find more friction. He didn't know exactly what he wanted but knew this was not enough. 

"Raleigh," he whined, "More, please more," he begged, hooking his leg around his hip to bring their groins closer together.

“Come here,” Raleigh grunted, biting a bit at Chuck’s neck before separating enough to tug his shirt off before moving to rid Chuck of his as well. “Too many clothes.” Raleigh explained, fumbling to undo his belt and fly. His own first, then Chuck’s. Desperate to touch. To explore. To press and feel and connect.

Chuck was a little scared when Raleigh began to undo his belt, heart skipping a bit. "I- I've neverbeenwithanyone," he stammered out all at once, pulling the other man closer to hide his face in his neck.

Raleigh gave a soft breath and considered this, the hand he was working down over Chuck’s body stopped and came to rest flat on his lower belly. Chuck was a virgin. The realization sent a wave of excitement through him. 

“We’ll go slow then, okay? I do something you don’t like, just say and I’ll stop. There’s no pressure.”

They were all things Raleigh had wished his first partner had said to him. An awkward fumble with too little information from both parties which resulted in painful, terrible sex and a painful, terrible but short lived relationship. It was part of the reason Yancy had decided to take them out of Alaska and head somewhere warm. Somewhere with opportunity. Somewhere they could get a fresh start. 

“It’s supposed to feel good, okay?” He said, pressing a kiss to Chuck’s shoulder, his hand resuming it’s journey to pick at the elastic of Chuck’s underwear. “Every bit.” 

“O-okay,” Chuck stuttered, hands searching for something to hold on to. He felt bad for digging his nails into the other man’s back previously, not intending to hurt him. He pressed his face back into Raleigh’s neck, pressing soft kisses up the slope. “I. . . I trust you,” he murmured.

“I’ve got you.” Raleigh hummed into freckled skin before pushing his hand down past the offending elastic, moving gently to brush fingers through soft pubic hair and along the base of Chuck’s cock.

“Is this okay?” 

Chuck nodded, breath hitching at Raleigh's touch. "More than okay," he murmured.

Raleigh had barely noticed the nails in his skin before, too overtaken with the heat of another body and kisses and the little noises Chuck was making. And now he was certainly even more invested in those as he played, sliding his fingers further still across the soft skin of his balls and then back to take a gentle but firm grip on his cock. 

“Still too many clothes,” he whined, not quite knowing where this was going but knowing he wanted as much of Chuck against him as he could possible get. 

"Then fix it," Chuck grumbled, hands sliding down Raleigh's back to begin pushing down the other's pants.

Fair enough. And Raleigh moved to do just that, shoving Chuck’s jeans and underwear down past his knees while he wiggled to aid in the removal of his own. Shoes and denim and cotton were kicked to the end of the nest leaving them naked against the sleeping bags, and Raleigh took a minute to appreciate the view, letting his eyes sweep over the other and drink him in. Shit, he was fucking gorgeous. It was a pity he was all knocked around but nothing seemed broken and bruises would heal.

He gave a low whistle, sitting back on his knees as they faced each other. It was only a heartbeat before his hands were back on Chuck, skimming his thighs before one swept up over his chest and the other down to get a proper hold on the other boy’s dick. 

“Oh- you’re not..” He noted with slight surprise as he good his first real look at him.

Chuck froze. He wasn't what? He was too afraid to ask, just squeezed his eyes shut, chewing his lip. He wasn't good looking enough? Not big enough? Too much of an awkward ginger kid? His heart pounded loudly, hands dropping before suddenly moving back up to push at him. "If you're going to poke fun, we're done here."

“No, wait,” Raleigh protested, eyes wide as Chuck hit the brakes, grasping to pull him back. “I’m not! I’ve just never seen one uncircumcised before.”

"Wait, you're- of course," Chuck sighed relieved. "I uh... like I said, was born in Australia. Not... a common thing there, you know?"

“Really?” Raleigh asked, reaching to toy with Chuck’s foreskin. It was soft and, as he pushed it back a little. “Huh.” He glanced up at Chuck. “So I just. Like this? Or..”

"Here, like,"Chuck started, laying his hand over Raleigh's, moving him as he pleased. "Like this."

Raleigh let chuck guide him, moving his hand over his cock and then pulled his foreskin back. There wasn’t much of a difference, the older teen decided. 

“Just like this..” He murmured, shaking Chuck’s hand off and taking over. He scooted a little closer and licked the palm of his hand for a little slick before taking him in his hand again, other hand guiding Chuck’s hand to his own erection which stood proud and needy between them, pearling with a little bead of precum. 

Chuck felt good in his hand. Hard but smooth and the way his body swayed a little. The way Chuck let his lips part just so, the little noises he made… It was gorgeous. He was gorgeous and thick and warm and Raleigh was in heaven. Just, absolute heaven. 

Chuck stroked him in return, lightly at first, watching carefully for a reaction before continuing with a sure grip. “You’re...“ he started, chewing his lip while he found the right words. “Really big.”

Raleigh smiled and glanced down for a moment. “I’ve been told.” And to his credit, he was. He’d heard it a few times and finally asked Yancy about it and, as it turns out, yeah. He’s got a big ol’ cock. 

“That feels good, Chuck. Here,” He took the boy’s hand and maneuvered it a little in the exact way he knew he really liked it. “Like this. Fuck.. just like that.”

The younger boy followed Raleigh's direction, taking a bit too much pleasure in the way he guided his hand. He pressed his lips against his neck, nipping lightly before sucking his skin, leaving a small red mark behind.

And Raleigh couldn't help but whimper under the attention, tilting his hips forward to encourage Chuck as they stroked each other. He felt Chuck pull a hickey from his neck and parried by leaving another of his own on the boy's shoulder, his grasp on Chuck's cock firm as they moved in time. All softly rocking hips and hungry, gasping lips. 

“Shit,” Chuck sighed, “Feels so good.” His other hand threaded through Raleigh’s hair, tugging him close for another greedy kiss, tongue demanding entrance to his mouth. He couldn’t believe this was happening. Sure, he’d had an attraction to him but didn’t expect that to be returned. 

Which was ridiculous considering Chuck was fucking gorgeous. Raleigh found himself equally stunned, having been under the impression that Chuck was as straight as they came and had only been been joining in on Yancy's ribbing. This, though. This was basically the best case scenario. Save the homeless and beaten up parts. And the part where Chuck wasn't staying. Which was a part that Raleigh really didn't want to think about. 

"Yeah," Raleigh gasped between kisses, happy to give them freely. Happy to give Chuck whatever he damn well pleased, whimpering at the hand in his hair. A weakness he was only just learning he had. Raleigh broke the kiss after a moment to spit into his hand and reapply it to Chuck - moving in long, thorough strokes. He surged forward with his mouth again, this time latching to the other's throat to leave a nasty, dark love bite. It was possessive and claiming and seeing it as he broke away sent a shiver of red hot need through him with an intensity he didn't know he possessed.

Chuck let out a strangled noise at the teeth against his sensitive flesh, hips rocking into Raleigh’s hand. He closed his eyes, shivering, trying hard not to think about how marked up he was going to be after this, the thought alone needing him to will away his impending orgasm. Not that he didn’t want to either. He wanted to be able to last, to draw out this experience for as long as possible, knowing that they might never meet like this again. It was a hard truth that had him crashing his mouth against Raleigh’s, trying to memorize his taste, map out his mouth with his tongue. As much as he knew he should leave in the morning before he made more of a mess of their friendship, he didn’t want to.

And Raleigh didn’t want him to, either. Their exchange was something both passionate and frantic and youth and lack of experience did nothing but encourage them more. Say nothing of the fumbling. Say nothing of the fact they could be doing more. This was good. This was perfect. Tangling in kiss after kiss, hands roaming and tugging and grasping. 

Raleigh could feel himself curling towards release as his movements became more frantic and his brain had serious problems whether to release Chuck and focus on his own orgasm or keep up with the mutual touching. In the end it was the latter that won out but oh Jesus he was getting close. He was pretty sure Chuck was getting there as well if the way the other boy kissed him was anything to go off of. 

He liked it, their kissing. Their touching. There was a certain kind of connection between the two that Raleigh hadn’t really knows before. A tentative exploration mixed with intense and powerful need. He liked being needed. Being wanted. 

Save for his brother, he’d been unwanted for a great long while. Being in the situation he was, Raleigh was practically invisible. And it was unbearable. This, this right here, right now with Chuck.. This took the pressure off. Made him warm. He didn’t want that to go away. Stay here, he thought. Stay here with me. but he couldn’t find the words aloud. Couldn’t break their lips to beg him. So he kissed him harder. Sucked another hickey into the redhead’s neck just below his right ear and grasped his ass with his free hand, bucking into Chuck’s fist. It was dry but he didn’t mind the friction. And there was a particular way in which Chuck moved his wrist that was just doing all the right things to him. Kid was a natural. 

“Ah, fuuh-fuck. Don’t stop please don’t stop,” Raleigh heard himself babble, begging through their kiss as he panted and breathed hard through his nose. “Fuck, you’re so good. I’ll do anything, just please don’t stop.”

"No intention of it," Chuck panted, trying to put back on that cocky facade, only succeeding in making a whining sound. He was about to topple over the edge and as much as he tried he couldn't couldn't hold back. Raleigh's sound, the hitches in his breath, the way he was bucking into Chuck's hand- it was too much. Chuck squeezed his eyes shut, his own hand still stroking the other boy but there was no rhythm to it as he hit his peak. Chuck sank his teeth into Raleigh's shoulder. The noise he made was a little choked, muffled by the other boy's flesh, and the force of his orgasm ended up splattering his release over Raleigh's torso, the sight of which caused his dick to twitch feebly.

Raleigh had let out a garbled shout at the bite, pain spiking through him which was weird and folded into the pleasure coursing through him. He hadn’t let go, though, and Chuck came between them. On him. All over him, actually. And while he should have complained, he didn’t. 

It was hot.

“Fuck- fuck fuck fuck!” He swore, so close, desperate to come. Desperate for his own release. He released Chuck’s throbbing cock, hand sticky with release and applied it to his own, taking over and jerking with hard, tight strokes, eyes screwed closed with overwhelming pleasure. 

“Bite me again-” He heaved.

“Whu-?”  
“Bite me again!” and when Chuck did he swore loudly.

It built in him quickly, hurting over the edge and the second shock of pain-- pain he asked for-- made him come before he knew what happened. Muscles tight before relaxing into a hard shudder, mouth open with a stuttered moan. Curses dripped from him like prayers as he shot ribbons between them, adding to the mess and then collapsing backwards onto his sleeping bag; glassyeyed and panting.

Chuck took a few moments, staring at the ceiling until his heart rate slowed and his breathing evened out. He tentatively reached a hand out, threading their fingers together despite the sweat and spunk that lingered on their digits. "I'll have to say," he murmured, "I was not expecting that."

Raleigh looked at him with a light but tired smile, squeezing their fingers together a bit.

“Is that a good thing?” 

Chuck turned his head, shrinking a little under his gaze. "I'd say things went alright."

Raleigh laughed. He couldn’t help it, the light chuckle turning into a hard laugh before he was able to calm it down.

“Yeah- yeah it went alright. C’mere-”

Chuck's cheeks flushed as Raleigh laughed and he pursed his lips at his request, waiting a moment before: "Maybe I don't wanna if you're going to laugh at me like that."

“I’m nooot.” Raleigh insisted, giving a dopey smile and tugging their tangled fingers. “I’m happy, man. Come here and kiss me.” 

Chuck grinned, moving closer to press their lips together briefly, a little too giddy to offer much else. It was gentle and tender and Raleigh smiled into it. “See?” He said, lips ghosting. “You’re laughin’, too.”

"I'm not laughing," Chuck protested. "What, is it illegal to smile now?"

“I’ll let you off this time.” A beat. It was warm and comfortable and perfect. Raleigh opened his mouth to say something but lost his words when the familiar hard scraping of the front door broke the moment. “Shit-” Raleigh grunted, jerking up with alarm. “My brother--”

He scrambled up to grab his clothes but it wasn’t enough time and the door scraped shut again. Yancy was in the doorway a moment later and literally dropped the bag he’d been carrying before quickly turning back around in his panic to Not See What He Definitely Saw. His brother and Chuck. Naked. Covered in.. no no no nononononono.

“Jesus fuck, Raleigh!”

Chuck had finally located pants, pulling them on as fast as he possibly could but in his haste haste ended up thudding to the floor. He avoided both the brother's gazes, feeling something twist in his stomach. They should not have done this, it was going to cause more trouble.

Raleigh hadn’t even managed pants, and was instead attempting to cover himself with his shirt which had been the closest thing he could grab that wasn’t the sleeping bag, himself. 

“What happened to knocking!?” The younger Becket complained. “You always knock on the windows first. 

“My hands were full!”

“Well! Not cool, Yancy!”

“Not cool!? Raleigh you just fucked on my bed!”

“No we didn’t-” 

Yancy gave the longest most suffering sigh, still facing away, arm braced across the doorway. He dragged his other hand through his hair while the two got dressed. 

“Hey, Chuck… Good to see you, kiddo.”

"Wish it was under better circumstances," the younger man grumbled, tugging the pants up, forgoing a shirt for now as clean up was a necessity. "I um... bathroom... " he mumbled, darting through the doorway.

Raleigh followed behind and Yancy turned, picking his bag up with a grunt. 

“You guys are assholes!” He called. Raleigh snickered and came up behind Chuck, nipping at his neck without coming close enough to get him any messier than he already was. 

"Raaaay," Chuck whined, pulling away to finish the trek down the hall and into the bathroom. "This isn't awkward at all," he mumbled, already trying to clean up.

“What, it’s funny! You have no idea how many times I’ve walked in on him.” 

Chuck chewed his lip. "This. . . this was a mis-" he stopped himself, unable to bring himself to say it. "This was the wrong time," he said instead, wiping at his torso. He pulled Raleigh closer, starting to clean up the other.

Mistake.

Raleigh heard it. He heard it and he hears the cover up and it makes his chest swell with a sort of sinking pain. What were you thinking, you moron. You weren’t. He looked at Chuck quietly, eyes narrowed in confusion, lips pursed as he let the other boy clean him. 

“Chuck..” He Didn’t want to ask. He was asking anyway. “Do you regret this? Us? I thought-”

"Its just the wrong time," Chuck said softly. "I... I'll be leaving soon. We won't be able to see this through. Unless... unless you were expecting this to be a one time thing?" He can't even look at Raleigh. Raleigh knew he'd be leaving, that he'd never intended to stay in Portland. Shit. 

Shit.

“I-” Raleigh scrambled for words and then an accurate way to articulate them which proved hard. “I don’t-” He finally managed, answering in earnest. “I don’t know. I wasn’t thinking about it.”

Chuck stepped close, looking straight at him. "I like you, Raleigh," he said firmly. "And I'll take whatever you'll give me, even if it's just tonight."

“Don’t say that to me. You can’t say that and then leave. We’re only just getting to know each other. What happened to staying for a while?” 

"I'll be around for a while," Chuck assured, not knowing himself if that was the truth or not. He stepped closer, hand reaching up to stroke through Raleigh's hair. "If you want me around, that is."

“I do! I-yes, I do.” It was a quick and slightly stumbly answer. With Chuck’s hand in his hair how could it not be, and he took the half step between them, pressing chest to chest. “I know..that it’s selfish,” He began, babbling the stream of consciousness that was rising in him faster than he could process it. “And this is a bullshit thing to do but I want you to stay. I have nothing to give you and I know you’re goin’ to Seattle and that this isn’t your life and I told you to go home but-” He stopped, needing a breath. Fingers gently curling over Chuck’s hips. What did Raleigh know, anyway. He’s nineteen. He’s nineteen and he’s in heaven right now and what does he know.   
“I really like you. And I wanna know you. I could protect you. And, like. We could do stuff. Like- not even just sexy stuff but other stuff, too. Like just hang out and read comics and be...friends.” 

Lame, Raleigh. That was fucking lame. You are an adult, what the fuck. He felt himself blush and looked down. 

Chuck was momentarily stunned, heat creeping up his neck. He gently urged Raleigh's chin up with a finger. "I want that too," he murmured, leaning in to steal a kiss.

The flood of relief that washed through Raleigh was visible and when Chuck kissed him he made a little whine, coming back for another. Chuck's kisses were addictive. Raleigh, an addict. 

Chuck smirked. "You like me that much, do you?"

"I wanna find out," Raleigh answered. His sincerity stronger than Chuck's ego. He came back for another kiss. Aw, boy. He was done for. This would undoubtedly end in tears and Raleigh didn't care. Didn't even think about it.

Chuck was seriously reconsidering his plans. Raleigh was showing him more affection than he'd been shown in years and while it was new and scary and not likely to last, he was desperate to enjoy it for as long as he could. 

He pressed close to him, one hand in his hair and the other on his hip as he ducked his head to kiss him heatedly. "Never wanna leave," he murmured against his lips before they were claimed again.

**Author's Note:**

> Special love to jaeger_fly for her behind the scenes input.


End file.
